What Season Is Best for Family Photos in New England?
- 11 minutes ago
- 8 min read
If you asked me what the best season is for family photos in New England, I probably wouldn't give you a season at all.
I'd ask you a few questions instead.
Are your kids happiest when they're barefoot and running through the sand? Does your family live for fall weekends and sweaters? Are September and October already a blur of football games, school activities and trying to figure out where everyone needs to be at the same time? Do you love the snow? Or are you counting down the days every year until everything finally starts turning green again?
Because the best season for family photos isn't necessarily the one that photographs the prettiest.
It's the one that feels the most like your family.
And please — don't pick October just because everyone takes family photos in October. Pick the season that actually fits your family.
If your kids are happiest barefoot at the beach, let's do summer.
If your weekends are completely taken over by sports every fall, maybe October isn't your month.
If your family loves snow days, let's embrace winter.
Your photos should feel like you, not like something you checked off a list because it's what everyone else was doing.
One of my favorite things about photographing families in New England is that every season gives us something completely different to work with.
We can have salty summer evenings at the beach, wander through golden fields in October, bundle up for a snowy adventure in January or wait for those first warm spring days when everything starts coming back to life.
So if you've been thinking, We really need new family photos, but when should we actually do them? let's figure it out together.
Summer Family Photos
I have such a soft spot for summer sessions. There's something about meeting at the beach in the evening, kicking off your shoes and basically letting the kids play while I photograph what happens.
Summer sessions don't need to feel very structured. We can walk along the water, hunt for shells, splash, race, explore or grab ice cream afterward.
That's when family photos start feeling less like a photo shoot and more like a summer night you happened to have photographed.
Where can we take summer family photos?
The beach is probably the obvious answer here, especially in New England, but it's definitely not the only one.
We could head to:
A favorite New England beach
Sand dunes and beach grass
A quiet lake
A family boat or marina
An open field at sunset
A coastal town
An ice cream shop followed by a walk
Your backyard with sprinklers, popsicles or a firepit
A favorite family vacation spot
Somewhere you already spend your summers together
I especially love locations that give kids something to do. If there's water to splash in, rocks to climb, shells to collect or ice cream to eat, suddenly nobody is thinking quite as much about the fact that they're having their picture taken.
And that's usually when we get the really good stuff.
But let's talk about summer sunsets.
Summer sunsets in New England are beautiful.
They're also late.
Since I love photographing during that softer evening light, a June or July session can start much later than parents expect.
If you have a toddler who turns into a tiny pumpkin at 7 PM, an 8 PM beach session might not be your family's idea of a good time.
On the other hand, summer schedules can sometimes be much more relaxed. There's no school the next morning, vacations change routines anyway and some kids are perfectly happy staying up late for an adventure.
Remember, you know your kids best.
And yes...there's humidity.
We have to talk about it.
New England summer can be absolutely gorgeous.
It can also be 87 degrees with what feels like 900% humidity. 😂
If being hot makes you miserable, that's something I genuinely want you to consider.
We can choose locations near the water and schedule your session later in the evening, but I would much rather have you choose a season when you'll feel comfortable than spend your entire session wishing you were standing directly in front of an air conditioner.
Ask yourself:
1. Does your family love being near the water or spending time outside during the summer?
2. Can your kids comfortably handle a later bedtime for one night?
3. How do you feel about warm weather — and, more importantly, New England humidity?
4. Do barefoot, slightly messy, playful photos sound more like your family than sweaters and foliage?
If you're answering yes to most of those, summer might be your season.
Fall Family Photos
There's a reason everyone thinks about family photos in the fall. New England really does show off.
The leaves change, the air gets cooler, the light becomes softer and warmer, and suddenly everyone wants to put on a sweater and wander through a field.
And I completely understand why.
Fall can be absolutely beautiful for family photos.
But there's something I want you to consider before automatically choosing October: is fall actually a relaxing season for your family?
For a lot of families, it isn't.
School has started. Sports are in full swing. Weekends fill up. There are football games, soccer tournaments, dance, school activities, apple picking, Halloween plans and approximately 47 other things somehow happening on the same Saturday.
If your calendar is already packed, squeezing family photos into the busiest month of your year might not be the best choice just because the leaves are pretty.
Where can we take fall family photos?
This is where New England gives us so many options.
Think:
Open fields
Wooded trails
Apple orchards
Farms
Mountain locations
Conservation areas
Historic New England towns
Lakes and ponds surrounded by foliage
Coastal locations after the summer crowds disappear
Your own neighborhood if you have gorgeous fall color nearby
And don't overlook the beach in the fall. The crowds disappear, the colors become softer and moodier and suddenly the same beach we used in July feels completely different.
You don't necessarily need peak foliage.
This is another reason I don't want families feeling like there's one magical October weekend when family photos must happen.
There isn't.
Early fall can give us warmer temperatures, golden grasses and just a hint of color.
Mid-fall can bring those oranges, reds and yellows everyone associates with New England.
And late fall gives us beautiful neutral tones, dried grasses, bare trees and a slightly moodier feeling that I personally really love.
They're different. They're also all beautiful.
Earlier sunsets can be a really good thing.
For families with little kids, this can be one of the biggest advantages of waiting until fall.
We can get that gorgeous evening light without asking your three-year-old to happily participate in family photos at 8 PM.
Ask yourself:
1. Are September and October already packed with school, sports and weekend activities?
2. Do you genuinely love layers, sweaters, boots and warmer earth tones?
3. Would an earlier session time work better for your children's schedules?
4. Are you drawn to fall because it feels like your family — or because you feel like that's when you're supposedto take family photos?
That last question might be the most important one.
Winter Family Photos
Winter gets overlooked for family photos. And I actually think that's a shame.
Because winter sessions can be so good when we stop trying to make them look like summer or fall.
Instead, embrace winter.
Give me snow boots. Rosy cheeks. A frozen lake. A downtown decorated for Christmas. Hot chocolate. A family snowball fight. A cozy cabin weekend.
Winter practically begs us to turn your session into an experience.
Where can we take winter family photos?
This is where we can have a little fun.
We could photograph your family:
On a snowy trail
At a Christmas tree farm
Near a frozen or snow-covered lake
Wandering through a cozy downtown
At a holiday market
At a cabin or Airbnb
In your own home ( check out the above photos)
On a sledding hill
In a mountain town
At the beach on a dramatic winter day
Or we don't have to go outside at all.
Turn on the Christmas music. Let the kids stay in their pajamas. Make the hot chocolate, decorate the cookies and embrace the cozy chaos.
Need a soundtrack? You can listen along to our family's favorite holiday playlist on Spotify.
Family photos don't have to mean finding a pretty field and standing in it.
Some of the most meaningful locations can be the places where your family actually spends time together.
The obvious downside? Weather.
Winter requires some flexibility. It might snow. It might be 45 degrees, or it might be absolutely freezing. And if you have very young children, there's definitely a point where cute snowy family adventure turns into everyone would like to go home immediately.
So winter sessions work best when we're willing to be flexible and let the weather help determine what the session becomes.
Ask yourself:
1. Does your family genuinely enjoy winter and snow?
2. Would you be open to making an activity part of your session, think sledding, hot chocolate, baking or exploring somewhere together?
3. Are you comfortable being flexible if New England weather decides not to cooperate?
4. Would you rather have photos that feel cozy and a little different from the traditional family-photo look?
If you're nodding along, don't count winter out.
Spring Family Photos
Spring might be the most underrated family-photo season in New England.
Everyone has survived winter. The days start getting longer. Things slowly turn green again. Flowers begin blooming.
And locations that will be packed a few months later can still be wonderfully quiet. There's also just this freshness to spring photos that I really love.
Where can we take spring family photos?
Depending on when you schedule your session, we could look for:
Flowering gardens
Cherry blossoms
Magnolia trees
Coastal towns before tourist season
Beaches before the summer crowds arrive
Open fields as they begin turning green
Historic neighborhoods
Arboretums and gardens
Farms
Your own backyard as everything starts blooming
Spring is also wonderful if you love lighter clothing and softer colors but don't necessarily want the heat of summer.
And because spring isn't automatically considered family photo season, it gives us a little more freedom.
Popular locations may be quieter. Calendars can sometimes be easier. And your photos aren't going to look exactly like everyone else's October family session.
The challenge? Spring is unpredictable.
A beautiful 65-degree April afternoon can turn into a 42-degree evening surprisingly quickly.
And rain happens. A lot.
So, like winter, spring sometimes requires a little flexibility.
But when we get one of those perfect New England spring evenings?
They're hard to beat.
Ask yourself:
1. Do you love softer greens, flowers and lighter colors more than traditional fall tones?
2. Would you like to use popular locations before peak summer and fall crowds arrive?
3. Does your family's schedule tend to be calmer in spring than it is in fall?
4. Are you okay having a backup plan if spring weather doesn't cooperate?
If those sound like you, spring might actually be your sweet spot.
So...What IS the Best Season for Family Photos?
There isn't one. And that's kind of the point.
Instead of asking:
When does everyone else take family photos?
Ask:
When does my family feel the most like us?
Maybe your kids spend every summer barefoot at the beach.
Maybe you count down the days until sweater weather.
Maybe your family skis every winter and you're happiest when there's snow on the ground.
Maybe spring is when everyone finally comes alive again after months of being inside.
Or maybe the best time has absolutely nothing to do with the weather.
Maybe fall is your craziest season and summer is when you finally slow down.
Maybe your toddler needs an early bedtime.
Maybe your teenager plays three fall sports.
Maybe you absolutely hate humidity.
Those things matter.
I want your family photos to feel like your family.
I'd rather photograph you somewhere you love, doing something you enjoy, during a season that makes sense for your life than choose a date simply because it's when everyone else is booking family photos.
So one more time for the people in the back:
Don't pick October just because everyone takes family photos in October. Pick the season that actually fits your family.
And if you still have absolutely no idea which one that is?
Tell me about your family. Tell me how old your kids are. Tell me what you love doing together. Tell me whether you're beach people or mountain people, early birds or night owls, homebodies or always planning your next adventure.
I'll help you figure out the season. And then we'll find somewhere really good to go.
